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US 9,791,929 B2Granted
Tactile control system
AssigneeElwha LLC
InventorsRoderick A. Hyde, Jordin T. Kare, Lowell L. Wood, Jr.
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A tactile control system includes a control member configurable between a plurality of physical configurations and configured to receive manual input from a user. The tactile control system also includes a transducer coupled to the control member and configured to generate a signal based on the manual input from the user, and an actuator coupled to the transducer and the control member and configured to change the physical configuration of the control member based on the signal.
Claims32
A control device, comprising:
- a graspable control member configurable between a plurality of shapes and configured to receive manual input from a user;
- a transducer coupled to the control member and configured to generate a signal based on the manual input from the user;
- and
- an actuator coupled to the transducer and the control member and configured to change an actual physical configuration of the control member between a plurality of tactilely identifiable shapes based on the signal;
- wherein the plurality of shapes includes a continuum of shapes between two or more distinct shapes, wherein each of the continuum of shapes is a combination of the two or more distinct shapes;
- and
- wherein the graspable control member is configured to gradually change between the two more distinct shapes along the continuum of shapes based on a variable state of the control device.
4 more elements
A control device, comprising:
- a display screen;
- a graspable control member coupled to the display screen, the control member having a surface that is configurable independent of the display screen between a plurality of different surface textures, the surface configured to receive manual input from a user;
- a transducer coupled to the control member and configured to generate a signal based on the manual input from the user;
- and
- an actuator coupled to the transducer and the control member and configured to change the surface texture of the control member based on the signal, wherein the surface texture remains static absent further manual input from the user;
- wherein the plurality of different surface textures are configured to provide a tactile indication of a variable state related to the control device;
- wherein the variable state is changeable based on the manual input from the user;
- and
- wherein the variable state is based on a current device or a current system configured to be modified by the control member.
6 more elements
A control system, comprising:
- a graspable control member having a plurality of physical configurations and being configured to receive manual input from a user;
- and
- a controller coupled to the control member and configured to control the physical configuration of the control member based on the manual input from the user, wherein the physical configuration of the control member is configured to provide a tactile indication of a current state of the control system, wherein the physical configuration remains static absent further manual input from the user;
- wherein the plurality of physical configurations includes a continuum of shapes between two or more distinct shapes, wherein each of the continuum of shapes is a combination of the two or more distinct shapes;
- and
- wherein the graspable control member is configured to gradually change between the two more distinct shapes along the continuum of shapes based on the current state of the control system.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.